Please note this article was first published in October 2021 and has been refreshed with new, up to date information for relevance and your enjoyment. 

Why is it necessary to rethink our collateral?

As marketing professionals, our goal is to deliver the right message to the right audience at the appropriate stages of the customer journey. Different audiences require different types of marketing collateral. Let's explore some old and new ideas to generate leads, promote products, convert new customers, and re-engage lost or abandoned leads.

The most crucial aspect to remember is that every piece of marketing collateral should effectively communicate your company's message, brand tone, color scheme, and style.

At Click Creative, our creative agency Melbourne team utilises a wide range of tools to create and assemble the collateral necessary for your business to thrive in today's noisy marketplace. We believe that finding the right combination of physical and digital efforts will provide a significant boost to your business. Here's what we've been delivering to our clients with proven results.

Print Collateral: Still Relevant and Impactful

Despite the rise of eCommerce and social channels, there is still a place for custom print collateral that connects with people offline. Print collateral encompasses various materials such as business cards, flyers, brochures, magazines, and annual reports. Take a moment to look at your fridge or junk drawer, and you'll find examples of print collateral in your own home. This illustrates the enduring relevance of print in marketing.

To achieve optimal results, businesses still need a mix of online and offline marketing collateral to nurture prospects through different stages of the buyer journey. Having relevant collateral tailored to your niche increases the chances of hitting the mark.

Statistics show that more than 75% of brands use marketing collateral to strengthen their brand presence.

The Fusion of Print and Digital

Printed brochures combined with digital elements offer a powerful way to reach and engage different audiences. While digital oversaturation has made us appreciate well-crafted print materials, brochures have evolved into digital resources that can be easily shared across platforms. By using the same tools to create both online and offline content, you can ensure consistent branding and messaging.

The key to success with brochures lies in having both digital and print versions (perhaps utilising QR codes as the team at Click explored last month), educating your audience, keeping your call-to-action (CTA) message simple, maintaining consistent brand positioning, and using graphics and images to convey information.

Turning Customers into Advocates with SWAG

One effective way to turn existing customers into brand advocates is by offering great SWAG (promotional merchandise). By thinking outside the box and providing freebies that people talk about and use regularly, your brand gains exposure and leaves a lasting impression. Effective marketing collateral makes it easier to close sales and streamline your marketing efforts.

Here are the top trends for 2023 in the promotional products space:

• Eco-friendly reusable travel cups and cotton shopping bags to promote sustainability.
• Work-from-home products like notebooks, pens, mugs, and tees that cater to the evolving remote work culture.
• Utilising Australian-made products to support local businesses and highlight national pride.
• Tech gadgets such as wireless earbuds and chargers, capitalising on the increasing reliance on technology.
• Co-branded products from well-known manufacturers like Titleist, Nike, Under Armour, and other reputable brands to enhance brand recognition.
• Outdoor products such as suncare items, waterproof sacks, sports towels, picnic blankets, and frisbees to cater to outdoor activities and leisure.

You can find an extensive list of providers and products through APPA (Australasian Promotional Products Association), our client, whose members in the promo merchandise industry offer a wide array of product options that can all be branded to suit your merchandise requirements.

Annual Reports: Going Beyond Traditional Formats

Traditional annual reports delivered as PDFs and thick magazines tend to be dry and lack engagement. However, organisations can now create interactive and visually appealing digital reports using online content platforms. These reports can include interactive charts, infographics, and visual aids to present numerical data effectively. By making reports responsive and viewable on different devices, accessibility is improved while potentially reducing the environmental impact of printing.

The Big Presentation

As a business, you should be giving persuasive and activating presentations that represent your work. Getting attention isn't terribly difficult. Keeping it, however, certainly is. Whether you're presenting to a prospective client or before a panel of potential investors, your goal is the same - inspire your audience. Inspiring trust leads to conversions and more business.

Here are the keys to creating a great presentation:

• Use vibrant design elements. Create visually appealing slides that are simple and engaging.
• Focus on 3 main points/takeaways to keep your presentation concise and impactful.
• Tell a story. Our brains are hardwired to respond to stories for both survival and entertainment. Instead of overwhelming the audience with data and facts, craft a narrative that resonates with them and helps them remember your presentation long after it's over.
• Use visuals to explain complex ideas and include relevant and meaningful data.
• Encourage audience participation by asking questions and leaving room for discussion points.
• Provide an interactive digital copy of your presentation as a follow-up, allowing your audience to revisit the content and share it with others.

Bricks and mortar outdoor signage still counts

Outdoor signage remains a cost-effective and high-return marketing strategy that targets various demographics. It is non-intrusive, drives traffic, and can be personalised to your brand. Consider the following options:

• Outdoor wall signs: Utilise the space on the side, front, or top of your building to create a highly visible sales tool for both car and foot traffic.
• Sidewalk signage: Capture attention by placing signs at eye level, as people tend to look down while walking.
• Roll-up banners, event logo walls, and vinyl portable signage: These options provide flexibility and portability for different marketing events and campaigns.
• Window and floor graphics: Make use of the floor space to guide customers or create eye-catching window displays that draw people into your store.
• Vehicle signage and wraps: Maximise exposure by designing visually appealing wraps for company vehicles, turning them into moving billboards.

Coming in for Landing!

Every landing page needs to be designed to achieve a specific business objective. The key assets may be similar between pages and platforms, but each will speak to a different audience, at a different stage of the customer journey with a different purposeful call to action.

Here are some of the elements we use to maximise the success of a landing page for your next advertising or marketing campaign:

• Keep it simple and concise
• Identify key selling points and competitive differences
• Conduct A/B tests to optimise your content
• Provide incentives, create scarcity or urgency
• Focus on a single Call to Action
• Create visually appealing pages
• Leverage social proof through client testimonials and social credibility
• Craft powerful and compelling copy
• Maintain consistent branding in terms of tone and visuals
• Utilise chatbots for improved engagement and customer support.